What burns me about the Wolves trade is the loss of yet another first round pick.

Two conditional second round picks are basically worthless since I can't remember the Wolves having much luck with any other second round pick they have ever made. Sure, there can be gems out there to be had in the 2nd round, but we'd need a good GM/President to actually pick those.

And that's it, I think there is about a dozen better talents out there than Ron Artest. He's the best defensive player in basketball. He can shoot the money ball. He blocks shots. He shoots at a high percentage. The only problem is that he's been taking Terrell Owens lessons. Last year he wanted to quit the Pacers to pursue a rap career, thought twice, and 2 weeks later went ape**** at The Palace. This year he had another nervous breakdown after a wrist injury.

Now, why it makes sense. Obviously, the Pacers have to trade him to change the scenery. The Kings had to trade Stojakovic because he's a free agent at the end of the year and probably won't be resigned. The Kings are losing Peja anyhow, so they may as well take a chance on one of the top dozen talents in the league who might be there for a long time.

The kicker is for the Pacers, is that the next day Jermaine O'Neal went down pretty much for the season. DOH!!! Indiana just CANNOT catch a break! What a 2 year long disaster for a team a lot of people picked to win the East.

« Last Edit: January 27, 2006, 05:05 PM by Ithorian Clergy »

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Its a tough call, but considering age, all around game, and just making their teams better, I think I'd have to agree with your list:

Kevin GarnettLeBron JamesDwyane WadeTim DuncanKobe Bryant

There's other greats that are in the twilight of their career (or near it) such as Shaq, Nash, and Iverson. The rest of the players listed above are probably the "best of the rest" at this point in their careers, but I'd say these 5 are probably a cut above right now as complete players. Guys like Shawn Marion and Elton Brand are often underappreciated, but some of the more consistent players in the league right now. Maybe not to the level yet of being the "greats" like those above, but very good. Some players like Arenas and McGrady are definite talents, but maybe not enough of "team" guys yet. The same could be said of Kobe I guess, but even though I don't particularly care for him, he is one of the best in the league. Probably the best pure scorer out there right now.

Kobe has been on the NBA All-Defense 1st or 2nd team five times in his career. Dirk is carrying a big goose egg in that area. That's enough for me to determine who the better defensive player is. Kobe is one of the best on-the-ball defenders in the game today. And Dirk should average more rebounds and blocked shots per game ... he's nearly seven-feet-tall. Don't get me wrong ... I love Dirk as a player, and his offensive game is a joy to watch. I wouldn't call him a liability on the defensive end, but he isn't much of a stopper either.

i would take dirk over wade and lebron because i think he is a more unique player than they are. he is the kind of guy that causes all kinds of defensive problems for teams and makes scoring easier for all his team mates.

rayne is right though about dirks defense. his first 5 years in the league the mavs point of view on defense was "the best defense is a good offense". the whole team is doing better this year, but he will probably never be on an all defense team though.

i disagree about dirk's rebounding he gets lots of double doubles, and for his role on the team i don't think he really needs to be striving for more blocks. guys who go for alot of blocks also get into foul trouble alot.

i would take dirk over wade and lebron because i think he is a more unique player than they are. he is the kind of guy that causes all kinds of defensive problems for teams and makes scoring easier for all his team mates.

Again ... not to take anything away from Dirk (I love the big German!), but Wade and James cause just as many defensive problems (if not more), and they both set up their teammates well. Especially LeBron. That guy's just a freak. He's 6'8", over 240 lbs., and he's faster up and down the court than just about anyone in the league. Add the fact that he's one of the top three passers out there, and I know I wouldn't want to try and stop him defensively.Dirk is a tough cover though. If you put a four or five man on him, he easily blows right by them. Put a three on him, and he just shoots over them. If he was a better passer, there would be no way to stop him.